Here's Why Sexting Is Totally Normal, According to Science

If you've ever felt weird or silly sending some kind of sexy text to whoever you've hooked up with, don't. Research indicates nearly three quarters of all Americans—74 percent—regularly sext with their partners.

In its International Sex Survey released last week, the Kinsey Institute cited information gathered from 140,000 people in 198 countries about the sexy side of tech use. Kinsey researcher Amanda Gesselman said that sexting may now be "a new, but typical, step in a sexual or romantic relationship."

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Reading your sexts like... (Photo: Getty Images)

A surprising 67 percent of adults responding admitted to sexting. According to the researchers, that's an astonishing jump from just 5 years ago—an increase of more than 45 percent.

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Gesselman also stated that this jump in sexting "and this large of a proportion of respondents suggest that incorporating tech into our private lives may be becoming normal."

It's still mostly just text, too. Sixty-five percent of Americans committed enough to learn how to sext on a traditional phone keypad in the days of flip-phones are still doing so with iPhones and Androids today. And no matter how omnipresent Snapchat seems in the news, only 38 percent of survey respondents reported sending X-rated snaps.

The Kinsey study turned up some other interesting facts. For example: One-third of US residents admitted they've hooked up via dating apps like Tinder. That said, Kinsey found that those who do use such apps are often after something that'll last—at least for a little while.

A mere 20 percent admitted to using such apps to just get laid.

The world champs at using tech to hookup, surprisingly, are Swedes. Nearly half of the Swedish residents answering the survey have used apps. Russians are the least interested in finding love or lust online—a mere 3 percent said they'd used apps to find that special someone.

The bottom line is this, though: If your preferred method of flirting involves hunching in the dark over a smart phone and searching for devil and eggplant emoji, you are not alone.

It's totally cool, too. If you're good at it, you still end up in the bedroom, in the end.